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Billy Cunningham

Billy Cunningham

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Encyclopedia
William John "Billy" Cunningham (born June 3, 1943) is an American former professional basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 player and coach, who was nicknamed the Kangaroo
Kangaroo
A kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae . In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, especially those of the genus Macropus, Red Kangaroo, Antilopine Kangaroo, Eastern Grey Kangaroo and Western Grey Kangaroo. Kangaroos are endemic to the country...

 Kid
.

Beginnings


Billy Cunningham was born in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...

, New York. His fame began while he was playing at Erasmus Hall High School
Erasmus Hall High School
Erasmus Hall Campus High School is a four-year public high school in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, United States operated by the New York City Department of Education....

 in Brooklyn, where he was the MVP in the Brooklyn League in 1961. That year, he was the First-Team All-New York
City, and a member of the Parade
Parade (magazine)
Parade is an American nationwide Sunday newspaper magazine, distributed in more than 500 newspapers in the United States. It was founded in 1941 and is owned by Advance Publications. The most widely read magazine in the U.S., Parade has a circulation of 32.2 million and a readership of nearly 70...

Magazine All-America Team.

College career


Cunningham then went to the University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...

, where he excelled. He once grabbed a record 27 rebounds
Rebound (basketball)
A rebound in basketball is the act of successfully gaining possession of the basketball after a missed field goal or free throw. Rebounds in basketball are a routine part in the game, as all possessions change after a shot is successfully made...

 in a game vs. Clemson
Clemson University
Clemson University is an American public, coeducational, land-grant, sea-grant, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, United States....

 on February 16, 1963. Cunningham also set a single-game North Carolina record with 48 points
Point (basketball)
Points in basketball are used to keep track of the score in a game. Points can be accumulated by making field goals or free throws ....

 against Tulane
Tulane University
Tulane University is a private, nonsectarian research university located in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States...

 on December 10, 1964. In his UNC career, he scored 1,709 points (24.8 points per game), and grabbed 1,062 rebounds (15.4 rebounds per game). Upon graduation, his 1,062 rebounds were the best in North Carolina history and he held seasonal records for most rebounds (379 in 1964) and rebound average (16.1 in 1963).

Honors and achievements

  • 3-year letter winner (in his day, freshmen were ineligible for varsity
    Varsity team
    In the United States and Canada, varsity sports teams are the principal athletic teams representing a college, university, high school or other secondary school. Such teams compete against the principal athletic teams at other colleges/universities, or in the case of secondary schools, against...

     athletics)
  • All-Atlantic Coast Conference
    Atlantic Coast Conference
    The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...

     (1963–65)
  • ACC Player of the Year (1965)
  • All-ACC Tournament Team (1963–64)
  • ACC Academic All-Conference (1965)
  • A USBWA All-America (1964–65)
  • Helms Foundation All-America (1965)
  • Sporting News
    The Sporting News
    Sporting News is an American-based sports magazine. It was established in 1886, and it became the dominant American publication covering baseball — so much so that it acquired the nickname "The Bible of Baseball"...

    All-America 2nd team (1965)
  • Team Captain (1965)
  • Played in the East-West Game in 1965
  • Played at the World University Games in 1965
  • Named to the ACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team
    ACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team
    In 2002 the Atlantic Coast Conference selected 50th anniversary teams for most of its sports. The 50-member men's basketball team was voted on by a 120-member blue-ribbon committee that was selected by the league's 50th Anniversary Committee....

    , honoring the fifty best players in ACC history (2002)

Pro basketball career


In 1965, Cunningham joined the Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...

 of the National Basketball Association
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...

 as a sixth man
Sixth man
The sixth man in basketball is a player who is not a starter but comes off the bench much more often than other reserves, often being the first player to be substituted in. The sixth man often plays minutes equal to or exceeding some of the starters and posts similar statistics. He is often a...

 and played well enough to be named to the NBA All-Rookie Team
NBA All-Rookie Team
The NBA All-Rookie Team is an annual National Basketball Association honor given since the 1962–63 NBA season to the top rookies during the regular season. Voting is conducted by the NBA head coaches; who are not allowed to vote for players on their own team. The All-Rookie Team is generally...

.

Cunningham is well-known for coaching the 76ers to the 1983 NBA Championship
NBA Finals
The NBA Finals is the championship series of the National Basketball Association . The series was named the NBA World Championship Series until 1986....

. Cunningham also played on the powerful 1967 Sixers championship team (featuring Wilt Chamberlain
Wilt Chamberlain
Wilton Norman "Wilt" Chamberlain was an American professional NBA basketball player for the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers; he also played for the Harlem Globetrotters prior to playing in the NBA...

, Hal Greer
Hal Greer
Harold Everett Greer is a retired American professional basketball player.He attended Douglass Junior and Senior High School in Huntington. He played college basketball at Marshall University and was drafted by the Syracuse Nationals of the NBA in 1958...

, Chet Walker
Chet Walker
Chester "Chet" Walker is a former pro basketball player.Walker played high school basketball for the Benton Harbor High School boys basketball team. He graduated from Bradley University in 1962 as the school's all-time leading scorer. The Bradley Braves won the NIT Championship in 1957 and 1960...

, and Luke Jackson
Lucious Jackson
Lucious Brown "Luke" Jackson is a retired American professional basketball player.-Collegiate career:Born in San Marcos, Texas, Jackson played college basketball at Pan American College and was a member the U.S. Olympic basketball team that won the gold at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo...

).

In 1972, he joined the Carolina Cougars
Carolina Cougars
Carolina Cougars was a basketball franchise in the former American Basketball Association that existed from late 1969 through 1974. The Cougars were originally a charter member of the ABA as the Houston Mavericks in 1967. The Mavericks moved to North Carolina in late 1969 after two unsuccessful...

 of the American Basketball Association
American Basketball Association
The American Basketball Association was a professional basketball league founded in 1967. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger in 1976.-League history:...

. In his first ABA season, Cunningham made the All-ABA First Team and was named the ABA MVP. In that 1972-73 season he led the Cougars to the regular season Eastern Division championship and into the 1973 ABA Playoffs
1973 ABA Playoffs
The 1973 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1972-1973 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Division champion Indiana Pacers defeating the Eastern Division champion Kentucky Colonels, four games to three in the ABA Finals.-Notable...

 where they beat the New York Nets in the Eastern Division Semifinals to advance to the Eastern Division Finals
1973 ABA Playoffs
The 1973 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1972-1973 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Division champion Indiana Pacers defeating the Eastern Division champion Kentucky Colonels, four games to three in the ABA Finals.-Notable...

. In the Division Finals the Cougars lost a tight seven game series to the Kentucky Colonels
Kentucky Colonels
The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of any franchise in the league's history, but the team did...

, 4 games to 3. In the 1973-74 season Cunningham and the Cougars finished third in the Eastern Division and lost again to the Kentucky Colonels in the Eastern Division semifinals
1974 ABA Playoffs
The 1974 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1973-1974 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Division champion New York Nets defeating the Western Division champion Utah Stars, four games to one in the ABA Finals.-Notable events:A one game...

. After the 1973-74 season, Cunningham returned to the 76ers, where he played until he suffered a career-ending injury early in the 1975-76 season. For his career, Cunningham scored 16,310 points and grabbed 7,981 rebounds in both the NBA and the ABA.

After his playing days were done, he became the head coach of the 76ers on November 4, 1977, and built a great team featuring the likes of Bobby Jones, Maurice Cheeks
Maurice Cheeks
Maurice Edward "Mo" Cheeks is a retired American professional basketball player and assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Thunder. He was the head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association from May 23, 2005 to December 13, 2008...

, Andrew Toney
Andrew Toney
Andrew Toney is an American former professional basketball player who played for the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers from 1980 to 1988...

, Moses Malone
Moses Malone
Moses Eugene Malone is a retired American Hall of Fame basketball player who starred in both the American Basketball Association and the National Basketball Association...

, and Julius Erving
Julius Erving
Julius Winfield Erving II , commonly known by the nickname Dr. J, is a retired American basketball player who helped launch a modern style of play that emphasizes leaping and play above the rim....

. He reached the 200, 300, and 400-win milestone faster than any coach in NBA history. He led Philadelphia to the NBA Finals 3 times, in 1979-80
1979-80 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles Lakers*Rookie of the Year: Larry Bird, Boston Celtics*Coach of the Year: Bill Fitch, Boston Celtics*All-NBA First Team:**Paul Westphal, Phoenix Suns...

, 1981-82
1981-82 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Moses Malone, Houston Rockets*Rookie of the Year: Buck Williams, New Jersey Nets*Coach of the Year: Gene Shue, Washington Bullets*All-NBA First Team:**Larry Bird, Boston Celtics...

 and 1982-83
1982-83 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Moses Malone, Philadelphia 76ers*Rookie of the Year: Terry Cummings, San Diego Clippers*Defensive Player of the Year: Sidney Moncrief, Milwaukee Bucks...

, facing the Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...

 all 3 times. The 76ers lost to the Lakers in 1980
1980 NBA Finals
The 1980 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1979–80 NBA season.Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the league's MVP. But midway through Game 5, the Laker center suffered a severely sprained ankle. He managed to come back in the game in the 4th quarter to lead the Lakers to victory...

 and 1982
1982 NBA Finals
The 1982 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1981-82 NBA season, the top level of competition in men's professional basketball in North America. The series saw the Los Angeles Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers....

, but after acquiring Moses Malone
Moses Malone
Moses Eugene Malone is a retired American Hall of Fame basketball player who starred in both the American Basketball Association and the National Basketball Association...

, Cunningham finally got them past the Lakers in 1983
1983 NBA Finals
The 1983 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1982–83 NBA season.-Overview:The final piece of the Philadelphia 76ers' championship puzzle was completed before the 1982-83 season when they acquired center Moses Malone from the Houston Rockets...

, winning the franchise's second NBA Championship as part of a 12-1 playoff run. Upon his retirement, his 454 wins as a head coach were the 12th best in NBA history.

Beyond playing and coaching


In 1987
1987-88 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls*Rookie of the Year: Mark Jackson, New York Knicks*Defensive Player of the Year: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls...

, Cunningham replaced Tom Heinsohn as the lead color commentator
Color commentator
A color commentator is a sports commentator who assists the play-by-play announcer, often by filling in any time when play is not in progress. The color analyst and main commentator will often exchange comments freely throughout the broadcast, when the play-by-play announcer is not describing the...

 (alongside play-by-play man Dick Stockton
Dick Stockton
Dick Stockton is an American sportscaster. He is currently employed by Fox Sports and Turner Sports as a football, baseball, and basketball play-by-play announcer.-Early life and career:...

) for CBS' NBA telecasts. Cunningham left CBS Sports
CBS Sports
CBS Sports is a division of CBS Broadcasting which airs sporting events on the American television network. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on West 52nd Street in midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on West 57th Street.CBS...

 the following season to join the Miami Heat
Miami Heat
The Miami Heat is a professional basketball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. The team is a member of the Southeast Division in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . They play their home games at American Airlines Arena in Downtown Miami...

 expansion franchise as a minority owner; he ultimately sold his interest of the Heat on August 12, 1994. Cunningham was subsequently replaced on CBS by Hubie Brown
Hubie Brown
Hubert Jude "Hubie" Brown is a retired American basketball coach and a current television analyst. Brown is a two-time NBA Coach of the Year, the honors being separated by 26 years...

.

Coaching record


|-
| align="left" |PHI
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...


| align="left" |
|76||53||23||.697|| align="center" |1st in Atlantic||10||6||4||.600
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Finals
1978 NBA Playoffs
The 1978 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1977-1978 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Washington Bullets defeating the Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics four games to three in the Finals. Wes...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |
|82||47||35||.573|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||9||5||4||.556
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Semifinals
1979 NBA Playoffs
The 1979 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1978-1979 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics defeating the Eastern Conference champion Washington Bullets four games to one in the Finals. The Sonics...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |
|82||59||23||.720|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||18||12||6||.667
| align="center" |Lost in NBA Finals
1980 NBA Finals
The 1980 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1979–80 NBA season.Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the league's MVP. But midway through Game 5, the Laker center suffered a severely sprained ankle. He managed to come back in the game in the 4th quarter to lead the Lakers to victory...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |
|82||62||20||.756|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||16||9||7||.563
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Finals
1981 NBA Playoffs
The 1981 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament which followed National Basketball Association's 1980–81 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics winning their 14th overall championship by defeating the Western Conference champion Houston Rockets in...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |
|82||58||24||.707|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||21||12||9||.571
| align="center" |Lost in NBA Finals
1982 NBA Finals
The 1982 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1981-82 NBA season, the top level of competition in men's professional basketball in North America. The series saw the Los Angeles Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers....


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |
|82||65||17||.793|| align="center" |1st in Atlantic||13||12||1||.923
| align="center" |Won NBA Championship
1983 NBA Finals
The 1983 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1982–83 NBA season.-Overview:The final piece of the Philadelphia 76ers' championship puzzle was completed before the 1982-83 season when they acquired center Moses Malone from the Houston Rockets...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |
|82||52||30||.634|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||5||2||3||.400
| align="center" |Lost in First Round
1984 NBA Playoffs
The 1984 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1983-84 season. This was the first postseason allowing sixteen teams to qualify, a format that is still in use as of 2011...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |
|82||58||24||.707|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||13||8||5||.615
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Finals
1985 NBA Playoffs
The 1985 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1984-85 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeating the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics, four games to two, in the NBA Finals...


|-class="sortbottom"
| align="left" |Career
| ||650||454||196||.698|| ||105||66||39||.629

Honors

  • Elected to Naismith
    James Naismith
    The first game of "Basket Ball" was played in December 1891. In a handwritten report, Naismith described the circumstances of the inaugural match; in contrast to modern basketball, the players played nine versus nine, handled a soccer ball, not a basketball, and instead of shooting at two hoops,...

     Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
    Basketball Hall of Fame
    The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, honors exceptional basketball players, coaches, referees, executives, and other major contributors to the game of basketball worldwide...

     (1986)
  • All-NBA First Team (1969, 1970, 1971)
  • ABA All Star, First Team (1973)
  • All-NBA Second Team (1972)
  • Four-time All-Star
    National Basketball Association All-Star Game
    The National Basketball Association staged its first All-Star Game in the Boston Garden on March 2, 1951. From that year on, the game has matched the best players in the Eastern Conference with the best players in the Western Conference....

  • Elected to the ABA's All-Time Team
    ABA's All-Time Team
    The ABA All-Time Team were chosen in 1997 on the occasion of the thirtieth anniversary of the founding of the American Basketball Association to comprise the thirty best and most influential players of the ABA during its ten years and nine full regular seasons of operation, with respect not only...

  • One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History
    NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
    The 50 Greatest Players in National Basketball Association History were chosen in 1996 to honor the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the National Basketball Association...

     (1996)
  • His number 32 jersey is retired by the Philadelphia 76ers; however, he reactivated it for Charles Barkley
    Charles Barkley
    Charles Wade Barkley is a former American professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Sir Charles" and "The Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley established himself as one of the National Basketball Association's most dominating power forwards...

     to wear for the 1991–92 NBA season
    1991-92 NBA season
    -Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls*Rookie of the Year: Larry Johnson, Charlotte Hornets*Defensive Player of the Year: David Robinson, San Antonio Spurs...

    . Barkley normally wore the number 34, but switched to 32 in honor of Magic Johnson
    Magic Johnson
    Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. is a retired American professional basketball player who played point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . After winning championships in high school and college, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA Draft by the Lakers...

    , who had announced at the start of the season that he was HIV
    HIV
    Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...

    -positive.

See also


External links


{{Other persons|William Cunningham}}

William John "Billy" Cunningham (born June 3, 1943) is an American former professional basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 player and coach, who was nicknamed the Kangaroo
Kangaroo
A kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae . In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, especially those of the genus Macropus, Red Kangaroo, Antilopine Kangaroo, Eastern Grey Kangaroo and Western Grey Kangaroo. Kangaroos are endemic to the country...

 Kid
.

Beginnings


Billy Cunningham was born in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...

, New York. His fame began while he was playing at Erasmus Hall High School
Erasmus Hall High School
Erasmus Hall Campus High School is a four-year public high school in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, United States operated by the New York City Department of Education....

 in Brooklyn, where he was the MVP in the Brooklyn League in 1961. That year, he was the First-Team All-New York
City, and a member of the Parade
Parade (magazine)
Parade is an American nationwide Sunday newspaper magazine, distributed in more than 500 newspapers in the United States. It was founded in 1941 and is owned by Advance Publications. The most widely read magazine in the U.S., Parade has a circulation of 32.2 million and a readership of nearly 70...

Magazine All-America Team.

College career


Cunningham then went to the University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...

, where he excelled. He once grabbed a record 27 rebounds
Rebound (basketball)
A rebound in basketball is the act of successfully gaining possession of the basketball after a missed field goal or free throw. Rebounds in basketball are a routine part in the game, as all possessions change after a shot is successfully made...

 in a game vs. Clemson
Clemson University
Clemson University is an American public, coeducational, land-grant, sea-grant, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, United States....

 on February 16, 1963. Cunningham also set a single-game North Carolina record with 48 points
Point (basketball)
Points in basketball are used to keep track of the score in a game. Points can be accumulated by making field goals or free throws ....

 against Tulane
Tulane University
Tulane University is a private, nonsectarian research university located in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States...

 on December 10, 1964. In his UNC career, he scored 1,709 points (24.8 points per game), and grabbed 1,062 rebounds (15.4 rebounds per game). Upon graduation, his 1,062 rebounds were the best in North Carolina history and he held seasonal records for most rebounds (379 in 1964) and rebound average (16.1 in 1963).

Honors and achievements

  • 3-year letter winner (in his day, freshmen were ineligible for varsity
    Varsity team
    In the United States and Canada, varsity sports teams are the principal athletic teams representing a college, university, high school or other secondary school. Such teams compete against the principal athletic teams at other colleges/universities, or in the case of secondary schools, against...

     athletics)
  • All-Atlantic Coast Conference
    Atlantic Coast Conference
    The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...

     (1963–65)
  • ACC Player of the Year (1965)
  • All-ACC Tournament Team (1963–64)
  • ACC Academic All-Conference (1965)
  • A USBWA All-America (1964–65)
  • Helms Foundation All-America (1965)
  • Sporting News
    The Sporting News
    Sporting News is an American-based sports magazine. It was established in 1886, and it became the dominant American publication covering baseball — so much so that it acquired the nickname "The Bible of Baseball"...

    All-America 2nd team (1965)
  • Team Captain (1965)
  • Played in the East-West Game in 1965
  • Played at the World University Games in 1965
  • Named to the ACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team
    ACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team
    In 2002 the Atlantic Coast Conference selected 50th anniversary teams for most of its sports. The 50-member men's basketball team was voted on by a 120-member blue-ribbon committee that was selected by the league's 50th Anniversary Committee....

    , honoring the fifty best players in ACC history (2002)

Pro basketball career


In 1965, Cunningham joined the Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...

 of the National Basketball Association
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...

 as a sixth man
Sixth man
The sixth man in basketball is a player who is not a starter but comes off the bench much more often than other reserves, often being the first player to be substituted in. The sixth man often plays minutes equal to or exceeding some of the starters and posts similar statistics. He is often a...

 and played well enough to be named to the NBA All-Rookie Team
NBA All-Rookie Team
The NBA All-Rookie Team is an annual National Basketball Association honor given since the 1962–63 NBA season to the top rookies during the regular season. Voting is conducted by the NBA head coaches; who are not allowed to vote for players on their own team. The All-Rookie Team is generally...

.

Cunningham is well-known for coaching the 76ers to the 1983 NBA Championship
NBA Finals
The NBA Finals is the championship series of the National Basketball Association . The series was named the NBA World Championship Series until 1986....

. Cunningham also played on the powerful 1967 Sixers championship team (featuring Wilt Chamberlain
Wilt Chamberlain
Wilton Norman "Wilt" Chamberlain was an American professional NBA basketball player for the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers; he also played for the Harlem Globetrotters prior to playing in the NBA...

, Hal Greer
Hal Greer
Harold Everett Greer is a retired American professional basketball player.He attended Douglass Junior and Senior High School in Huntington. He played college basketball at Marshall University and was drafted by the Syracuse Nationals of the NBA in 1958...

, Chet Walker
Chet Walker
Chester "Chet" Walker is a former pro basketball player.Walker played high school basketball for the Benton Harbor High School boys basketball team. He graduated from Bradley University in 1962 as the school's all-time leading scorer. The Bradley Braves won the NIT Championship in 1957 and 1960...

, and Luke Jackson
Lucious Jackson
Lucious Brown "Luke" Jackson is a retired American professional basketball player.-Collegiate career:Born in San Marcos, Texas, Jackson played college basketball at Pan American College and was a member the U.S. Olympic basketball team that won the gold at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo...

).

In 1972, he joined the Carolina Cougars
Carolina Cougars
Carolina Cougars was a basketball franchise in the former American Basketball Association that existed from late 1969 through 1974. The Cougars were originally a charter member of the ABA as the Houston Mavericks in 1967. The Mavericks moved to North Carolina in late 1969 after two unsuccessful...

 of the American Basketball Association
American Basketball Association
The American Basketball Association was a professional basketball league founded in 1967. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger in 1976.-League history:...

. In his first ABA season, Cunningham made the All-ABA First Team and was named the ABA MVP. In that 1972-73 season he led the Cougars to the regular season Eastern Division championship and into the 1973 ABA Playoffs
1973 ABA Playoffs
The 1973 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1972-1973 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Division champion Indiana Pacers defeating the Eastern Division champion Kentucky Colonels, four games to three in the ABA Finals.-Notable...

 where they beat the New York Nets in the Eastern Division Semifinals to advance to the Eastern Division Finals
1973 ABA Playoffs
The 1973 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1972-1973 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Division champion Indiana Pacers defeating the Eastern Division champion Kentucky Colonels, four games to three in the ABA Finals.-Notable...

. In the Division Finals the Cougars lost a tight seven game series to the Kentucky Colonels
Kentucky Colonels
The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of any franchise in the league's history, but the team did...

, 4 games to 3. In the 1973-74 season Cunningham and the Cougars finished third in the Eastern Division and lost again to the Kentucky Colonels in the Eastern Division semifinals
1974 ABA Playoffs
The 1974 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1973-1974 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Division champion New York Nets defeating the Western Division champion Utah Stars, four games to one in the ABA Finals.-Notable events:A one game...

. After the 1973-74 season, Cunningham returned to the 76ers, where he played until he suffered a career-ending injury early in the 1975-76 season. For his career, Cunningham scored 16,310 points and grabbed 7,981 rebounds in both the NBA and the ABA.

After his playing days were done, he became the head coach of the 76ers on November 4, 1977, and built a great team featuring the likes of Bobby Jones, Maurice Cheeks
Maurice Cheeks
Maurice Edward "Mo" Cheeks is a retired American professional basketball player and assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Thunder. He was the head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association from May 23, 2005 to December 13, 2008...

, Andrew Toney
Andrew Toney
Andrew Toney is an American former professional basketball player who played for the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers from 1980 to 1988...

, Moses Malone
Moses Malone
Moses Eugene Malone is a retired American Hall of Fame basketball player who starred in both the American Basketball Association and the National Basketball Association...

, and Julius Erving
Julius Erving
Julius Winfield Erving II , commonly known by the nickname Dr. J, is a retired American basketball player who helped launch a modern style of play that emphasizes leaping and play above the rim....

. He reached the 200, 300, and 400-win milestone faster than any coach in NBA history. He led Philadelphia to the NBA Finals 3 times, in 1979-80
1979-80 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles Lakers*Rookie of the Year: Larry Bird, Boston Celtics*Coach of the Year: Bill Fitch, Boston Celtics*All-NBA First Team:**Paul Westphal, Phoenix Suns...

, 1981-82
1981-82 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Moses Malone, Houston Rockets*Rookie of the Year: Buck Williams, New Jersey Nets*Coach of the Year: Gene Shue, Washington Bullets*All-NBA First Team:**Larry Bird, Boston Celtics...

 and 1982-83
1982-83 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Moses Malone, Philadelphia 76ers*Rookie of the Year: Terry Cummings, San Diego Clippers*Defensive Player of the Year: Sidney Moncrief, Milwaukee Bucks...

, facing the Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...

 all 3 times. The 76ers lost to the Lakers in 1980
1980 NBA Finals
The 1980 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1979–80 NBA season.Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the league's MVP. But midway through Game 5, the Laker center suffered a severely sprained ankle. He managed to come back in the game in the 4th quarter to lead the Lakers to victory...

 and 1982
1982 NBA Finals
The 1982 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1981-82 NBA season, the top level of competition in men's professional basketball in North America. The series saw the Los Angeles Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers....

, but after acquiring Moses Malone
Moses Malone
Moses Eugene Malone is a retired American Hall of Fame basketball player who starred in both the American Basketball Association and the National Basketball Association...

, Cunningham finally got them past the Lakers in 1983
1983 NBA Finals
The 1983 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1982–83 NBA season.-Overview:The final piece of the Philadelphia 76ers' championship puzzle was completed before the 1982-83 season when they acquired center Moses Malone from the Houston Rockets...

, winning the franchise's second NBA Championship as part of a 12-1 playoff run. Upon his retirement, his 454 wins as a head coach were the 12th best in NBA history.

Beyond playing and coaching


In 1987
1987-88 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls*Rookie of the Year: Mark Jackson, New York Knicks*Defensive Player of the Year: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls...

, Cunningham replaced Tom Heinsohn as the lead color commentator
Color commentator
A color commentator is a sports commentator who assists the play-by-play announcer, often by filling in any time when play is not in progress. The color analyst and main commentator will often exchange comments freely throughout the broadcast, when the play-by-play announcer is not describing the...

 (alongside play-by-play man Dick Stockton
Dick Stockton
Dick Stockton is an American sportscaster. He is currently employed by Fox Sports and Turner Sports as a football, baseball, and basketball play-by-play announcer.-Early life and career:...

) for CBS' NBA telecasts. Cunningham left CBS Sports
CBS Sports
CBS Sports is a division of CBS Broadcasting which airs sporting events on the American television network. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on West 52nd Street in midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on West 57th Street.CBS...

 the following season to join the Miami Heat
Miami Heat
The Miami Heat is a professional basketball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. The team is a member of the Southeast Division in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . They play their home games at American Airlines Arena in Downtown Miami...

 expansion franchise as a minority owner; he ultimately sold his interest of the Heat on August 12, 1994. Cunningham was subsequently replaced on CBS by Hubie Brown
Hubie Brown
Hubert Jude "Hubie" Brown is a retired American basketball coach and a current television analyst. Brown is a two-time NBA Coach of the Year, the honors being separated by 26 years...

.

Coaching record


{{NBA coach statistics legend}}
{{NBA coach statistics start}}
|-
| align="left" |PHI
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...


| align="left" |{{nbay|1977}}
|76||53||23||.697|| align="center" |1st in Atlantic||10||6||4||.600
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Finals
1978 NBA Playoffs
The 1978 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1977-1978 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Washington Bullets defeating the Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics four games to three in the Finals. Wes...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1978}}
|82||47||35||.573|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||9||5||4||.556
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Semifinals
1979 NBA Playoffs
The 1979 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1978-1979 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics defeating the Eastern Conference champion Washington Bullets four games to one in the Finals. The Sonics...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1979}}
|82||59||23||.720|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||18||12||6||.667
| align="center" |Lost in NBA Finals
1980 NBA Finals
The 1980 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1979–80 NBA season.Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the league's MVP. But midway through Game 5, the Laker center suffered a severely sprained ankle. He managed to come back in the game in the 4th quarter to lead the Lakers to victory...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1980}}
|82||62||20||.756|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||16||9||7||.563
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Finals
1981 NBA Playoffs
The 1981 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament which followed National Basketball Association's 1980–81 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics winning their 14th overall championship by defeating the Western Conference champion Houston Rockets in...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1981}}
|82||58||24||.707|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||21||12||9||.571
| align="center" |Lost in NBA Finals
1982 NBA Finals
The 1982 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1981-82 NBA season, the top level of competition in men's professional basketball in North America. The series saw the Los Angeles Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers....


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1982}}
|82||65||17||.793|| align="center" |1st in Atlantic||13||12||1||.923
| align="center" |Won NBA Championship
1983 NBA Finals
The 1983 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1982–83 NBA season.-Overview:The final piece of the Philadelphia 76ers' championship puzzle was completed before the 1982-83 season when they acquired center Moses Malone from the Houston Rockets...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1983}}
|82||52||30||.634|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||5||2||3||.400
| align="center" |Lost in First Round
1984 NBA Playoffs
The 1984 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1983-84 season. This was the first postseason allowing sixteen teams to qualify, a format that is still in use as of 2011...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1984}}
|82||58||24||.707|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||13||8||5||.615
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Finals
1985 NBA Playoffs
The 1985 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1984-85 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeating the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics, four games to two, in the NBA Finals...


|-class="sortbottom"
| align="left" |Career
| ||650||454||196||.698|| ||105||66||39||.629
{{end box}}

Honors

  • Elected to Naismith
    James Naismith
    The first game of "Basket Ball" was played in December 1891. In a handwritten report, Naismith described the circumstances of the inaugural match; in contrast to modern basketball, the players played nine versus nine, handled a soccer ball, not a basketball, and instead of shooting at two hoops,...

     Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
    Basketball Hall of Fame
    The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, honors exceptional basketball players, coaches, referees, executives, and other major contributors to the game of basketball worldwide...

     (1986)
  • All-NBA First Team (1969, 1970, 1971)
  • ABA All Star, First Team (1973)
  • All-NBA Second Team (1972)
  • Four-time All-Star
    National Basketball Association All-Star Game
    The National Basketball Association staged its first All-Star Game in the Boston Garden on March 2, 1951. From that year on, the game has matched the best players in the Eastern Conference with the best players in the Western Conference....

  • Elected to the ABA's All-Time Team
    ABA's All-Time Team
    The ABA All-Time Team were chosen in 1997 on the occasion of the thirtieth anniversary of the founding of the American Basketball Association to comprise the thirty best and most influential players of the ABA during its ten years and nine full regular seasons of operation, with respect not only...

  • One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History
    NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
    The 50 Greatest Players in National Basketball Association History were chosen in 1996 to honor the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the National Basketball Association...

     (1996)
  • His number 32 jersey is retired by the Philadelphia 76ers; however, he reactivated it for Charles Barkley
    Charles Barkley
    Charles Wade Barkley is a former American professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Sir Charles" and "The Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley established himself as one of the National Basketball Association's most dominating power forwards...

     to wear for the 1991–92 NBA season
    1991-92 NBA season
    -Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls*Rookie of the Year: Larry Johnson, Charlotte Hornets*Defensive Player of the Year: David Robinson, San Antonio Spurs...

    . Barkley normally wore the number 34, but switched to 32 in honor of Magic Johnson
    Magic Johnson
    Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. is a retired American professional basketball player who played point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . After winning championships in high school and college, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA Draft by the Lakers...

    , who had announced at the start of the season that he was HIV
    HIV
    Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...

    -positive.

See also


External links


{{Other persons|William Cunningham}}

William John "Billy" Cunningham (born June 3, 1943) is an American former professional basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 player and coach, who was nicknamed the Kangaroo
Kangaroo
A kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae . In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, especially those of the genus Macropus, Red Kangaroo, Antilopine Kangaroo, Eastern Grey Kangaroo and Western Grey Kangaroo. Kangaroos are endemic to the country...

 Kid
.

Beginnings


Billy Cunningham was born in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...

, New York. His fame began while he was playing at Erasmus Hall High School
Erasmus Hall High School
Erasmus Hall Campus High School is a four-year public high school in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, United States operated by the New York City Department of Education....

 in Brooklyn, where he was the MVP in the Brooklyn League in 1961. That year, he was the First-Team All-New York
City, and a member of the Parade
Parade (magazine)
Parade is an American nationwide Sunday newspaper magazine, distributed in more than 500 newspapers in the United States. It was founded in 1941 and is owned by Advance Publications. The most widely read magazine in the U.S., Parade has a circulation of 32.2 million and a readership of nearly 70...

Magazine All-America Team.

College career


Cunningham then went to the University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...

, where he excelled. He once grabbed a record 27 rebounds
Rebound (basketball)
A rebound in basketball is the act of successfully gaining possession of the basketball after a missed field goal or free throw. Rebounds in basketball are a routine part in the game, as all possessions change after a shot is successfully made...

 in a game vs. Clemson
Clemson University
Clemson University is an American public, coeducational, land-grant, sea-grant, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, United States....

 on February 16, 1963. Cunningham also set a single-game North Carolina record with 48 points
Point (basketball)
Points in basketball are used to keep track of the score in a game. Points can be accumulated by making field goals or free throws ....

 against Tulane
Tulane University
Tulane University is a private, nonsectarian research university located in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States...

 on December 10, 1964. In his UNC career, he scored 1,709 points (24.8 points per game), and grabbed 1,062 rebounds (15.4 rebounds per game). Upon graduation, his 1,062 rebounds were the best in North Carolina history and he held seasonal records for most rebounds (379 in 1964) and rebound average (16.1 in 1963).

Honors and achievements

  • 3-year letter winner (in his day, freshmen were ineligible for varsity
    Varsity team
    In the United States and Canada, varsity sports teams are the principal athletic teams representing a college, university, high school or other secondary school. Such teams compete against the principal athletic teams at other colleges/universities, or in the case of secondary schools, against...

     athletics)
  • All-Atlantic Coast Conference
    Atlantic Coast Conference
    The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...

     (1963–65)
  • ACC Player of the Year (1965)
  • All-ACC Tournament Team (1963–64)
  • ACC Academic All-Conference (1965)
  • A USBWA All-America (1964–65)
  • Helms Foundation All-America (1965)
  • Sporting News
    The Sporting News
    Sporting News is an American-based sports magazine. It was established in 1886, and it became the dominant American publication covering baseball — so much so that it acquired the nickname "The Bible of Baseball"...

    All-America 2nd team (1965)
  • Team Captain (1965)
  • Played in the East-West Game in 1965
  • Played at the World University Games in 1965
  • Named to the ACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team
    ACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team
    In 2002 the Atlantic Coast Conference selected 50th anniversary teams for most of its sports. The 50-member men's basketball team was voted on by a 120-member blue-ribbon committee that was selected by the league's 50th Anniversary Committee....

    , honoring the fifty best players in ACC history (2002)

Pro basketball career


In 1965, Cunningham joined the Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...

 of the National Basketball Association
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...

 as a sixth man
Sixth man
The sixth man in basketball is a player who is not a starter but comes off the bench much more often than other reserves, often being the first player to be substituted in. The sixth man often plays minutes equal to or exceeding some of the starters and posts similar statistics. He is often a...

 and played well enough to be named to the NBA All-Rookie Team
NBA All-Rookie Team
The NBA All-Rookie Team is an annual National Basketball Association honor given since the 1962–63 NBA season to the top rookies during the regular season. Voting is conducted by the NBA head coaches; who are not allowed to vote for players on their own team. The All-Rookie Team is generally...

.

Cunningham is well-known for coaching the 76ers to the 1983 NBA Championship
NBA Finals
The NBA Finals is the championship series of the National Basketball Association . The series was named the NBA World Championship Series until 1986....

. Cunningham also played on the powerful 1967 Sixers championship team (featuring Wilt Chamberlain
Wilt Chamberlain
Wilton Norman "Wilt" Chamberlain was an American professional NBA basketball player for the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers; he also played for the Harlem Globetrotters prior to playing in the NBA...

, Hal Greer
Hal Greer
Harold Everett Greer is a retired American professional basketball player.He attended Douglass Junior and Senior High School in Huntington. He played college basketball at Marshall University and was drafted by the Syracuse Nationals of the NBA in 1958...

, Chet Walker
Chet Walker
Chester "Chet" Walker is a former pro basketball player.Walker played high school basketball for the Benton Harbor High School boys basketball team. He graduated from Bradley University in 1962 as the school's all-time leading scorer. The Bradley Braves won the NIT Championship in 1957 and 1960...

, and Luke Jackson
Lucious Jackson
Lucious Brown "Luke" Jackson is a retired American professional basketball player.-Collegiate career:Born in San Marcos, Texas, Jackson played college basketball at Pan American College and was a member the U.S. Olympic basketball team that won the gold at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo...

).

In 1972, he joined the Carolina Cougars
Carolina Cougars
Carolina Cougars was a basketball franchise in the former American Basketball Association that existed from late 1969 through 1974. The Cougars were originally a charter member of the ABA as the Houston Mavericks in 1967. The Mavericks moved to North Carolina in late 1969 after two unsuccessful...

 of the American Basketball Association
American Basketball Association
The American Basketball Association was a professional basketball league founded in 1967. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger in 1976.-League history:...

. In his first ABA season, Cunningham made the All-ABA First Team and was named the ABA MVP. In that 1972-73 season he led the Cougars to the regular season Eastern Division championship and into the 1973 ABA Playoffs
1973 ABA Playoffs
The 1973 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1972-1973 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Division champion Indiana Pacers defeating the Eastern Division champion Kentucky Colonels, four games to three in the ABA Finals.-Notable...

 where they beat the New York Nets in the Eastern Division Semifinals to advance to the Eastern Division Finals
1973 ABA Playoffs
The 1973 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1972-1973 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Division champion Indiana Pacers defeating the Eastern Division champion Kentucky Colonels, four games to three in the ABA Finals.-Notable...

. In the Division Finals the Cougars lost a tight seven game series to the Kentucky Colonels
Kentucky Colonels
The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of any franchise in the league's history, but the team did...

, 4 games to 3. In the 1973-74 season Cunningham and the Cougars finished third in the Eastern Division and lost again to the Kentucky Colonels in the Eastern Division semifinals
1974 ABA Playoffs
The 1974 ABA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the American Basketball Association's 1973-1974 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Division champion New York Nets defeating the Western Division champion Utah Stars, four games to one in the ABA Finals.-Notable events:A one game...

. After the 1973-74 season, Cunningham returned to the 76ers, where he played until he suffered a career-ending injury early in the 1975-76 season. For his career, Cunningham scored 16,310 points and grabbed 7,981 rebounds in both the NBA and the ABA.

After his playing days were done, he became the head coach of the 76ers on November 4, 1977, and built a great team featuring the likes of Bobby Jones, Maurice Cheeks
Maurice Cheeks
Maurice Edward "Mo" Cheeks is a retired American professional basketball player and assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Thunder. He was the head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association from May 23, 2005 to December 13, 2008...

, Andrew Toney
Andrew Toney
Andrew Toney is an American former professional basketball player who played for the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers from 1980 to 1988...

, Moses Malone
Moses Malone
Moses Eugene Malone is a retired American Hall of Fame basketball player who starred in both the American Basketball Association and the National Basketball Association...

, and Julius Erving
Julius Erving
Julius Winfield Erving II , commonly known by the nickname Dr. J, is a retired American basketball player who helped launch a modern style of play that emphasizes leaping and play above the rim....

. He reached the 200, 300, and 400-win milestone faster than any coach in NBA history. He led Philadelphia to the NBA Finals 3 times, in 1979-80
1979-80 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles Lakers*Rookie of the Year: Larry Bird, Boston Celtics*Coach of the Year: Bill Fitch, Boston Celtics*All-NBA First Team:**Paul Westphal, Phoenix Suns...

, 1981-82
1981-82 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Moses Malone, Houston Rockets*Rookie of the Year: Buck Williams, New Jersey Nets*Coach of the Year: Gene Shue, Washington Bullets*All-NBA First Team:**Larry Bird, Boston Celtics...

 and 1982-83
1982-83 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Moses Malone, Philadelphia 76ers*Rookie of the Year: Terry Cummings, San Diego Clippers*Defensive Player of the Year: Sidney Moncrief, Milwaukee Bucks...

, facing the Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...

 all 3 times. The 76ers lost to the Lakers in 1980
1980 NBA Finals
The 1980 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1979–80 NBA season.Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the league's MVP. But midway through Game 5, the Laker center suffered a severely sprained ankle. He managed to come back in the game in the 4th quarter to lead the Lakers to victory...

 and 1982
1982 NBA Finals
The 1982 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1981-82 NBA season, the top level of competition in men's professional basketball in North America. The series saw the Los Angeles Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers....

, but after acquiring Moses Malone
Moses Malone
Moses Eugene Malone is a retired American Hall of Fame basketball player who starred in both the American Basketball Association and the National Basketball Association...

, Cunningham finally got them past the Lakers in 1983
1983 NBA Finals
The 1983 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1982–83 NBA season.-Overview:The final piece of the Philadelphia 76ers' championship puzzle was completed before the 1982-83 season when they acquired center Moses Malone from the Houston Rockets...

, winning the franchise's second NBA Championship as part of a 12-1 playoff run. Upon his retirement, his 454 wins as a head coach were the 12th best in NBA history.

Beyond playing and coaching


In 1987
1987-88 NBA season
-Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls*Rookie of the Year: Mark Jackson, New York Knicks*Defensive Player of the Year: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls...

, Cunningham replaced Tom Heinsohn as the lead color commentator
Color commentator
A color commentator is a sports commentator who assists the play-by-play announcer, often by filling in any time when play is not in progress. The color analyst and main commentator will often exchange comments freely throughout the broadcast, when the play-by-play announcer is not describing the...

 (alongside play-by-play man Dick Stockton
Dick Stockton
Dick Stockton is an American sportscaster. He is currently employed by Fox Sports and Turner Sports as a football, baseball, and basketball play-by-play announcer.-Early life and career:...

) for CBS' NBA telecasts. Cunningham left CBS Sports
CBS Sports
CBS Sports is a division of CBS Broadcasting which airs sporting events on the American television network. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on West 52nd Street in midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on West 57th Street.CBS...

 the following season to join the Miami Heat
Miami Heat
The Miami Heat is a professional basketball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. The team is a member of the Southeast Division in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . They play their home games at American Airlines Arena in Downtown Miami...

 expansion franchise as a minority owner; he ultimately sold his interest of the Heat on August 12, 1994. Cunningham was subsequently replaced on CBS by Hubie Brown
Hubie Brown
Hubert Jude "Hubie" Brown is a retired American basketball coach and a current television analyst. Brown is a two-time NBA Coach of the Year, the honors being separated by 26 years...

.

Coaching record


{{NBA coach statistics legend}}
{{NBA coach statistics start}}
|-
| align="left" |PHI
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...


| align="left" |{{nbay|1977}}
|76||53||23||.697|| align="center" |1st in Atlantic||10||6||4||.600
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Finals
1978 NBA Playoffs
The 1978 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1977-1978 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Washington Bullets defeating the Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics four games to three in the Finals. Wes...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1978}}
|82||47||35||.573|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||9||5||4||.556
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Semifinals
1979 NBA Playoffs
The 1979 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1978-1979 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics defeating the Eastern Conference champion Washington Bullets four games to one in the Finals. The Sonics...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1979}}
|82||59||23||.720|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||18||12||6||.667
| align="center" |Lost in NBA Finals
1980 NBA Finals
The 1980 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1979–80 NBA season.Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the league's MVP. But midway through Game 5, the Laker center suffered a severely sprained ankle. He managed to come back in the game in the 4th quarter to lead the Lakers to victory...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1980}}
|82||62||20||.756|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||16||9||7||.563
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Finals
1981 NBA Playoffs
The 1981 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament which followed National Basketball Association's 1980–81 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics winning their 14th overall championship by defeating the Western Conference champion Houston Rockets in...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1981}}
|82||58||24||.707|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||21||12||9||.571
| align="center" |Lost in NBA Finals
1982 NBA Finals
The 1982 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1981-82 NBA season, the top level of competition in men's professional basketball in North America. The series saw the Los Angeles Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers....


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1982}}
|82||65||17||.793|| align="center" |1st in Atlantic||13||12||1||.923
| align="center" |Won NBA Championship
1983 NBA Finals
The 1983 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1982–83 NBA season.-Overview:The final piece of the Philadelphia 76ers' championship puzzle was completed before the 1982-83 season when they acquired center Moses Malone from the Houston Rockets...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1983}}
|82||52||30||.634|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||5||2||3||.400
| align="center" |Lost in First Round
1984 NBA Playoffs
The 1984 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1983-84 season. This was the first postseason allowing sixteen teams to qualify, a format that is still in use as of 2011...


|-
| align="left" |PHI
| align="left" |{{nbay|1984}}
|82||58||24||.707|| align="center" |2nd in Atlantic||13||8||5||.615
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Finals
1985 NBA Playoffs
The 1985 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1984-85 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeating the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics, four games to two, in the NBA Finals...


|-class="sortbottom"
| align="left" |Career
| ||650||454||196||.698|| ||105||66||39||.629
{{end box}}

Honors

  • Elected to Naismith
    James Naismith
    The first game of "Basket Ball" was played in December 1891. In a handwritten report, Naismith described the circumstances of the inaugural match; in contrast to modern basketball, the players played nine versus nine, handled a soccer ball, not a basketball, and instead of shooting at two hoops,...

     Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
    Basketball Hall of Fame
    The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, honors exceptional basketball players, coaches, referees, executives, and other major contributors to the game of basketball worldwide...

     (1986)
  • All-NBA First Team (1969, 1970, 1971)
  • ABA All Star, First Team (1973)
  • All-NBA Second Team (1972)
  • Four-time All-Star
    National Basketball Association All-Star Game
    The National Basketball Association staged its first All-Star Game in the Boston Garden on March 2, 1951. From that year on, the game has matched the best players in the Eastern Conference with the best players in the Western Conference....

  • Elected to the ABA's All-Time Team
    ABA's All-Time Team
    The ABA All-Time Team were chosen in 1997 on the occasion of the thirtieth anniversary of the founding of the American Basketball Association to comprise the thirty best and most influential players of the ABA during its ten years and nine full regular seasons of operation, with respect not only...

  • One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History
    NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
    The 50 Greatest Players in National Basketball Association History were chosen in 1996 to honor the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the National Basketball Association...

     (1996)
  • His number 32 jersey is retired by the Philadelphia 76ers; however, he reactivated it for Charles Barkley
    Charles Barkley
    Charles Wade Barkley is a former American professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Sir Charles" and "The Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley established himself as one of the National Basketball Association's most dominating power forwards...

     to wear for the 1991–92 NBA season
    1991-92 NBA season
    -Statistics leaders:-NBA awards:*Most Valuable Player: Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls*Rookie of the Year: Larry Johnson, Charlotte Hornets*Defensive Player of the Year: David Robinson, San Antonio Spurs...

    . Barkley normally wore the number 34, but switched to 32 in honor of Magic Johnson
    Magic Johnson
    Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. is a retired American professional basketball player who played point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . After winning championships in high school and college, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA Draft by the Lakers...

    , who had announced at the start of the season that he was HIV
    HIV
    Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...

    -positive.

See also


External links



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{{ACC Men's Basketball POY}}
{{1965 NBA Draft}}
{{Philadelphia 76ers 1966-67 NBA champions}}
{{Philadelphia 76ers 1982-83 NBA champions}}
{{Philadelphia 76ers}}
{{1986 Basketball HOF}}
{{Basketball Hall of Fame forwards}}
{{NBA50}}
{{ABAATT}}
{{ABA MVPs}}
{{North Carolina Men's Basketball Retired Jerseys}}
{{NBA on CBS}}
{{2004 Philadelphia Sports HOF}}

{{Persondata
| NAME = Cunningham, Billy
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
| DATE OF BIRTH = June 3, 1943
| PLACE OF BIRTH = Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...

, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...


| DATE OF DEATH =
| PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cunningham, Billy}}